When Warriors general manager Larry Riley talks about scouting a potential draft pick, it sounds almost romantic.

Riley notices a prospect's eyes, the intricacies of his smile and the movement of his shoulders. In a perfect world, Riley finds a player who makes clear eye contact with his coaches, shows the same seriousness in practice drills and game situations, and is willing to carry his teammates' heavier loads without hesitation.

"I want to be right there with them," Riley said. "I want to be able to see everything."

In Riley's estimation, video study alone doesn't afford that kind of intimacy. So he maintains a globe-trotting scouting detail during his version of March Madness, a travel schedule that is probably unmatched in the league by similarly high-ranked decision-makers and one that takes a visible toll on his sleep cycles.

Starting after last month's trade deadline, Riley set out on an arduous itinerary. He shuttled east and then south, over the pond, back across the States, and finally throughout the Midwest - all the time chasing in-person evaluations of players who could be selected in the first round of this year's draft.

"I wouldn't say I'm hands-on, but I'm pretty active," Riley said. "I'm probably more active, or at least as active, as the other general managers. That's what I'm comfortable with and how I want to do it."

Riley speaks of the pristine evaluations he's received from director of player personnel Travis Schlenk, and the general manager has similar confidence in his entire scouting staff. Still, Riley wants firsthand knowledge of first-round players.

"I'm not saying someone else can't do it a better way, but I like to see the top prospects," Riley said. "Some guys are better at evaluating film, but I don't want to be a victim of what the camera shows you. Is it valuable? Heavens, yes, but to me, film is the follow-up."

After determining strengths and weaknesses in person, he watches hours of video focusing on those aspects. His process of "sitting" with the prospects before video work has netted the Warriors Ekpe Udoh and Stephen Curry in the past two drafts. During his tenure in Dallas, he helped find Josh Howard late in the first round. Riley also picked Steve Francis, Mike Bibby and Shareef Abdur-Rahim in Vancouver, and he was part of the staff that chose Vin Baker in Milwaukee.

But the travel to make those decisions takes a toll. Riley, 67, rarely loses his affable personality. Still, after compounded travel, the dark circles beneath his eyes can't be hidden.

"It wears on you, and it gets to be a difficult thing," Riley said. "It's difficult to sleep in whatever job you're in, so I don't want to come off as though I'm complaining. Even when I was coaching, I just kept going because of an adrenaline rush."

Earlier this month, Riley was uncharacteristically quiet around reporters on a couple of occasions - times when he might usually offer a sincere handshake or a funny quip. He was coming off a European trip during which he was unable to sleep on planes and refused to steal afternoon naps.

"Most of the guys who survive in the NBA can get acclimated to sleeping those ways," Riley said. "I can't do it, but I'll use a couple of days to catch up on sleep after the season."

In the meantime, Riley will try to be at least two places at once. He doesn't want his current players to view his scouting as demeaning toward the season at hand.

With the Warriors among the league's most improved teams this season, Riley said the goal is to compile as many victories as possible the rest of the way. Before Udoh had the second-best offensive effort of his career Monday, Riley pulled the rookie aside and told him to be more aggressive.

"I want to be close to the team and see the guys who are going to work for us, too," Riley said. "I get concerned that our team could think we're spending all this time on the draft and not focusing on the present. I don't want that to creep in. Our team is important to us, and I want them to know that I'm there with that same focus."

It shows in his eyes.

Travelin' man

Larry Riley is one of the more active scouts among NBA general managers. Here's an excerpt from his travel schedule:

Warriors today

Who: Warriors (30-41) vs.

Rockets (37-34)

Where: Houston

When: 5:30 p.m.

TV/Radio: CSNBA/1050

Of note: Houston has won 11 of its past 14 games and has trailed for a combined three minutes, 55 seconds during its current four-game winning streak. ... The Rockets have connected on 107 of 137 free-throw attempts (78.1 percent) in three games against the Warriors this season. ... Power forward Luis Scola (left knee) returned from a five-game absence with four points, eight rebounds and three blocked shots in 20 minutes against Utah on Sunday.